Rangers Take Series Opener from Angels

Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images

September 5, 2024

Rangers 3, Angels 1

ARLINGTON, Texas (Sep. 5) — The Texas Rangers got the upper hand in their series against the Los Angeles Angels on Thursday, beating them in their series opener, 3–1. All three of their runs came on one swing of the bat from Adolis Garcia in front of a crowd of 22,926. The Rangers will go for their fourth consecutive victory on Friday evening with first pitch scheduled for 7:05 pm Central at Globe Life Field. Left-hander Samuel Aldegheri (0–1, 3.60 ERA) will take the mound for the Angels, while righty Gerson Garabito (0–1, 2.55 ERA) will get the ball for the Rangers.

Garcia Goes Yard

The Rangers jumped out to a 3–0 lead in the bottom of the first. Marcus Semien led off with a single to left off Angels righty Jack Kochanowicz. After Wyatt Langford lined to short, Josh Smith advanced Semien to third with a sharp single to right. On deck was Garcia, who blasted a three-run shot to right-center, his 22nd of the season.

The Angels scored their lone run in the top of the third against Rangers left-hander Cody Bradford. Michael Stefanic led off the frame by grounding to short. Bradford walked Taylor Ward moments later. Up next was Zach Neto, who singled to right, moving Ward over to third. Ward crossed the plate on a 6–4 force play grounded into by Nolan Schanuel.

What Went Right for the Rangers

Cody Bradford may want to pick up the bill the next time he sits down to dinner with Garcia. Had it not been for his homer in the first, Bradford very well could have been saddled with his third loss of the season. The Rangers’ bullpen also chipped in on this win as well. They put together three scoreless innings after Bradford exited after the sixth.

One of the relievers they called upon was David Robertson, who struck out the side in the eighth. That gives him 1,142 career relief strikeouts to tie Francisco Rodriguez for 11th place on the all-time list.

What Went Wrong for the Rangers

The only thing that went wrong for the Rangers on Thursday was the force play that Schanuel grounded into that scored Ward in the third.

Another Quality Start for Bradford

Bradford picked up his fifth win after tossing six innings of one-run ball. His line on the evening was 6 IP, 2 H, 1 R-ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 90 pitches/58 strikes. He has logged five consecutive quality starts beginning on August 15. That marks the longest such streak by a Rangers starter in ’24 and longest since Nathan Eovaldi’s seven-game QS streak from April 18 to May 23 in 2023.

Bradford has made 10 starts in 2024, with the Rangers going 7–3 in those games. He is now 5-2 with an ERA of 1.60, nine walks, and 54 strikeouts. Bradford joins Colby Lewis and Cliff Lee as the only pitchers in Rangers franchise history to record 54 or more strikeouts and nine or fewer walks over their first 10 starts of a campaign, according to Stathead.

Much like Robertson, closer Kirby Yates struck out the side in the ninth to earn his 27th save of the year.

Kochanowicz’ Evening

Angels starter Jack Kochanowicz suffered the loss despite also twirling his fifth straight quality start. His final line was 6 IP, 8 H, 3 R-ER, 1 BB, 0 K, 1 HR, 93 pitches/65 strikes, and he now owns a record of 2–4 with an ERA of 4.89. He became the first Angels pitcher to author five consecutive quality starts or more since Shohei Ohtani in 2021. Ohtani had six straight Quality Starts from July 6 to August 18 of that year.

Kochanowicz produced Thursday’s quality start despite failing to record a strikeout, his second time to do so this season, making him the first Halos hurler to pull the trick multiple times in a single campaign since Ramón Ortiz in 2003. He held the Rangers scoreless over his final five frames after surrendering the three-run home run to García in the bottom of the first.

Bochy’s Postgame Comments

After the game, Rangers manager Bruce Bochy discussed Bradford’s performance. “You go back to last year, he was so good then, and so I think he just continued to build off that,” Bochy said. “But with the time that he missed, what’s really impressive to me, is how he’s come back, and he’s stronger than ever, and he’s pitching deeper in a game than he was last year. He’s so tough mentally. Even when things don’t go right out there, he just has that great ability to put it behind him and focus.”

Bradford’s Postgame Comments

Bradford also elaborated on his start on Thursday. “To be honest, today didn’t feel like a great rhythm,” Bradford said. “I know the numbers say one thing and the feeling might say another. I don’t like walking people. Today, I had two unnecessary walks, one of which led to the only run scored tonight. That bites at me.”

“I noticed in the second inning maybe, I looked up at the gun — and I hate when I do that — and noticed my velocity was 88 mph,” Bradford explained. “Usually my best bullets are around 90-91 mph this time of the year. I think that’s actually what caused me to get away from the fastball and not trust it. Because I let a number on an electronic scoreboard dictate how I pitched to a line. That’s unacceptable. Kudos to Jonah (Heim) and (pitching coach) Mike (Maddux) for helping me trust my stuff and get back to that.”